Soon after the decision, defaulters have paid power utilities to the tune of Rs 75 crore in old currencies to clear pending bills.

The government would be accepting the old currency notes for payment of bills till November 24.

The Centre’s move to demonetise Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 notes has given some reason to cheer to the cash strapped power utilities in Haryana. Soon after the decision, defaulters have paid power utilities to the tune of Rs 75 crore in old currencies to clear pending bills.

The government would be accepting the old currency notes for payment of bills till November 24. An amount of around Rs 5,000 crore is pending as power bills for both Uttar Haryana Bijli Vitran Nigam and Dakshin Haryana Bijli Vitran Nigam.

An official of the power department said that since November 8 onwards, people have been paying pending bills using old currency. “Till date, Rs75 crore has been collected,” he said. The official added that the power department is accepting old notes till November 24.